The Fish Sniffer

Meanwhile, Over Troubled Waters has been selected to be part of the 9th Annual Artivist International Film Festival, to be held November 1-4 in Hollywood. 

The festival will award $5,000 to the film or video that receives the most votes from their online community. The voting begins by November 1st, and the winner will be announced on December 1, 2012.  

On July 25, Governor Jerry Brown and Interior Secretary held a press conference in Sacramento announcing their decision to move ahead with the construction of the peripheral tunnels, a decision protested by fishermen, environmentalists, members of the Winnemem Wintu, Pit River, Hoopa Valley and other Tribes, family farmers and elected officials in a rally at the State Capitol after the press conference.  

Brown announced that the EIR/EIS for the peripheral tunnel/canal plan would be released "this fall," probably September. However, the tentative release date was rescheduled to October and now is looking like it will be on December 20, just in time for the holidays.  

Besides fast-tracking Scharzenegger's Bay Delta Conservation Plan to build the peripheral tunnels, Brown has also continued and expanded other controversial Schwarzenegger administration environmental policies.  

Brown presided over record water exports out of the Delta pumps in 2011, surpassing even the Schwarzenegger administration in his zeal to divert massive quantities of Delta water to corporate agribusiness and southern California water agencies. The massive diversions resulted in the “salvage” of over 11 million fish, including a record 9 million native Sacramento splittail.  

Brown also continued Arnold Schwarzenegger’s privately funded Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative. Overseen by an oil industry lobbyist and other corporate operatives, the tainted MLPA Initiative process created “marine protected areas” that don’t protect the ocean from seismic and military testing, oil drilling and spills, pollution, corporate aquaculture, wind and wave energy projects and all human impacts other than fishing and gathering.  

For more information on Restore the Delta, go to http://www.restorethedelta.org.